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Boosted by six Oscar nominations, Lion is a sizable hit in Australia and the U.K. and a sturdy earner in the U.S. and Italy. So can the feel-good, emotional drama based on the true story of the Indian-born Australian who found his birth mother 25 years after they were separated win over audiences in India?

In part, the strategy aims to target India's legion of cricket fans during the Australian Test team's tour of the country which draws massive TV audiences.

PVR’s theater-on-demand platform VKAAO is hosting sneak previews in response to requests from groups and individuals. Each screening requires a minimum of 40-50 people who each pay the normal ticket price ranging from 150-250 rupees ($2.22-$3.17).

"We think that certain films need to be presented to the right audience to build a momentum. Slumdog Millionaire was one. La La Land benefited from these sneak previews: it has completed 50 days in quite a few cinemas and will continue right through the Oscars." Damien Chazelle's musical drama has earned 6 crore ($902,000) so far, a good result for a specialty release.

Saroo Brierley, the Indian/Aussie whose memoir A Long Way Home was adapted into the Lion screenplay by Luke Davies, was on hand for the VKAAO launch and Garth Davis traveled to Mumbai and Kolkata for advance screenings.

The service is modeled on the U.S. platform Tugg but focuses more on mainstream films including Barry Jenkins' Moonlight, which opens Feb. 17, and M. Night Shyamalan's Split (Feb. 24). It also offers classics such as Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Aditya Chopra's 1995 musical comedy drama which starred Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol, and Disney's 1991 animated family film Beauty and the Beast.

By enabling patrons to select their preferred movie along with the location, date, and time of the screening at any cinema of their choice, the initiative is positioned as an alternative to the conventional way of watching movies.

Director Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire rang up a decent 30 crore net ($4.5 million) in India in 2009. "Lion is an incredible human story with a dash of Ripley’s Believe It Or Not. We expect it to resonate just as strongly as Slumdog Millionaire, if not more," Gianchandani said.

A See-Saw Films production in association with Aquarius Films and Sunstar Entertainment, the Dev Patel drama budgeted at $12 million has collected $25.5 million in the U.S., an outstanding $13.2 million in Australia where it’s been No. 1 for three weeks, $6.25 million in the U.K. and $4.2 million in Italy.

Indian audiences will see a host of familiar names in the cast including Priyanka Bose as Saroo's birth mother, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Tannistha Chatterjee. Tyro Abhishek Bharate plays Saroo's older brother Guddu.

Sunstar’s Andrew Fraser is using his connections in Australian cricket to promote the film. Mitchell Starc and Steve O’Keefe, two Australian bowlers whom he manages, will display the Lion sticker on their bats during the four Test series, which starts Feb. 23. Also Fraser is in talks with the Australian High Commission in India to organize a screening for the Australian team.

“Cricket is like a religion in India and the upcoming Test matches will have a massive audience over there, so it is terrific that Mitch and Steve are helping us to promote Lion throughout the series,” he said.

Dev Patel in 'Lion' (Photo: Mark Rodgers)

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